Harmonious solitude
by Ixionrider
Summary: Kiba has feelings for a certian kyuubi. But how will he tell him? On top of that, Naruto is leaving. Will Kiba tell him what has been welling up inside of him, or will he have to let Naruto go?
1. Chapter 1

Hey all you NaruKiba fans. I know it has been a while since I posted anything. School and everything. BLEH! Anyway, I don't own Naruto or any of its affiliates. But I do hope you enjoy this latest chapter in the ongoing soap opera that is my mind. 

"**Prelude to a Kiss"**

"You are goin' down Naruto." Kiba boasted as yet another sweat drop fell from his brow.

"Yeah right, in your dreams dog-breath." Naruto spat back, grunting with the added force over his elbow.

"I hope you like the smell of soap fox-boy. Cause when you lose, you're gonna have to clean my room and give Akamaru a bath." Kiba smiled.

"Ha! Yeah, well I hope you've got a lot of money. Cause when _you _lose, you're gonna treat me to Ramen, for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and everything in between." The blonde boasted.

The two friends had been at it for at least an hour, neither one backing down or calling it quits.

Their elbows were getting sore over the fine grained tree stump that served as the table for their wrestling bout. The two had worked up quite a sweat, Kiba most of all.

Sort of a clinching decision making process really, the two teens were too thick headed and stubborn to discuss matters peaceably. So it stood to reason that whenever they needed to settle a debate, they did so with a fair arm wrestle.

Though to call it fair wouldn't be very accurate. Naruto always had the upper hand, something even the Inuzuka pup was willing to admit. The unbridled power of the demon fox gave the blonde way too much strength. That's why he won most of their bouts. But every now and again, Kiba would win. In either case, this sort of creative problem solving actually became quite popular between the two teens and soon enough they would start an arm battle simply for the sake of having fun.

"Uh Oh! Someone's slipping." Kiba mocked, not at all convinced that his ploy worked.

"Not likely!" Naruto barked back.

"Face it Naruto, you can't beat me."

"Funny, I was about to say the same thing." The two shared an equivalent smile.

Naruto, the childhood companion of the Inuzuka child. Though the blonde grew up being despised by the village that would eventually come to call him its hero, the brunette in question always knew of his merit and admired him for it.

For a time, the brunette cub even tried to compete with him. Tried to gain the repute that he had over the village. But in secret, all he was trying to do was gain the favor of his young counterpart. If he could manage to prove himself as the dominant alpha male, maybe Naruto would see him as a worthy friend, comrade, companion, and as his feelings began to develop, his mate.

Though as time passed, he thought less and less about competition. It seemed that the small blonde wanted to share his friendship with him even if he proved himself or not. His will to fight was demolished in the Chuunin exams. The very thing he was fighting for, Naruto's friendship, was something that the blonde freely gave to him. So when he lost in the Chuunin exams, ironically to the very person he wanted to best, he gave up his ambition to win his heart over with strength.

He still couldn't explain it. The feeling he got when his friend smiled at him, like that smile was meant just for him. He also gave up trying to decipher it, and decided instead to allow this feeling to surround him.

"I will beat you this time Naruto." He never regretted his decision.

"Not this time." Naruto pushed the other's arm close to the grain of the wood.

"I'm gonna win…." Naruto jeered just before that crucial moment.

"Hey! There you are!" a familiar voice broke the determined stare of the two friends.

"Huh?" Naruto turned his gaze away from the Inuzuka to see his life long sensei standing in the clearing, waving a friendly jest at them both.

Suddenly, with the full force of distraction on his side, Kiba forced Naruto's arm all the way back down to touch the wood, declaring his victory of their game.

"Oh Yeah! You better wear your bathing suit Naruto. Akamaru has been crawling in mud all week." The Inuzuka crazed about his victory.

"Hey no fair! That was interference!" Naruto pouted.

"All's fair in arm wrestling."

"Dammit." Naruto turned to face his teacher.

"What is it Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto barked, knowing full well he had to keep his promise to clean Akamaru and the Inuzuka's bedroom.

"Hey Naruto, just thought I'd let you know that Jiraiya is looking for you." The Jounin crossed his arms waiting for a response.

"Jiraiya? What does he want with me?"

"Don't know. But he said it was important."

"Okay, tell him I'll see him tomorrow." Naruto turned to face the laughing brunette again.

"Actually, he would like to see you right now."

"Now?"

"Now."

Naruto pouted, exhausted from the hour of heavy excitement.

"All right. Hey Kiba, I'll see ya later okay?" Naruto posed to his friend who had inveigled his way closer to the blonde shinobi.

"Sure. I'll see you later Naruto. Don't forget, you have to clean my room and wash Akamaru." The brunette smiled.

"Dammit." Naruto sauntered away, defeated and dreading the day that he will have to clean that crafty and quick pup.

Naruto and his teacher were well out of view, leaving the brunette to his thoughts.

'Hm…I wonder if he'll really wear his swimsuit.' The brunette thought pleasantly.

He wandered from the small clearing where the two had engaged in their usual fun. It had been the place, they came to realize, where they played together as kids. He followed the dirt path that they had carved out from their many visits there.

Kiba walked lazily back to Konoha village, a place that, he was sure, wouldn't be called a complete village without their adorable idiot, his idiotic smile, the childish way he plays. Even now he still was as rambunctious as ever.

Back at the Inuzuka residence…

Kiba laid on his downy soft bed, his stare reaching the ceiling, listening to the creatures just outside his window. The crickets chirping and the owls hooting, the usual shrill calls of the night.

He heard his door creak open and a very puffy canine walked past the threshold to greet him after a long day of swimming in mud and trying to catch the cats of Konoha.

"Hey Akamaru."

The fuzzy ball of muddied fur walked to the edge of his master's bed and sat on his tiny haunches. The stale smell of dried earth plagued the brunette's already sensitive senses.

"Geez you stink." The teen remarked.

"I don't smell anything." The dog barked back.

"Well you reek." The brunette held his nose for emphasis.

"Yeah, well you don't smell any better."

"What?"

"You smell like wet dog." Akamaru quipped, his feather duster of a tail wagging incessantly.

"Now you're just lying. If I did smell, Naruto would've told me."

"Maybe he was just trying to be nice."

"Do I really smell bad?" the brunette sat up on his bed, a stern look of concern in his eyes, and smelled his jacket and his sleeves.

"Gotcha!" the tiny quadruped snapped.

"Seriously, that's not funny."

"Why not? I thought you didn't care about what you smell like."

"I don't."

"So then why did you shower before you went to see Naruto? Why do you put on such strong cologne sometimes?" the mutt started to prod.

"So I like to be presentable, so what?" Kiba hid.

"Uh-huh. This wouldn't have anything to do with you liking him would it?"

"WHAT?! Are you crazy? Naruto and I are good friends." That didn't sound very convincing. The Inuzuka teen sat up on his heels began to burn with color.

"So why are you blushing?" Akamaru was quickly gaining ground in this argument. He could tell when his master was hiding something forbidden. He could feel it when Kiba tried to cover his tracks in a cold lie.

"Don't be so smug you mutt. He's gonna come and give you a bath. By the smell of it, you really need it."

"Ouch, that hurts. I bet you told him to wear his bathing suit didn't you?" Akamaru laughed haughtily. Kiba froze, his cheeks flushed with a dry pink blush across the bridge of his nose.

"Why? Is it because you want to see him all wet?" the dog played. Kiba's ears started to sing with rushing blood.

"Just don't get jealous when he's holding me, soaking wet with nothing but his wet swim shorts on. And you know I hate baths. I won't go down without a fight. So don't be surprised if a little accident happens. Say for instance, his shorts should come flying off." Akamaru baited even further.

Kiba covered his lower waist with the comforter of his bed. His eyes started to dilate as his nose began to bleed. He quickly covered the small crimson stream from gushing over.

"That's what I thought." Akamaru huffed.

"Shut-up!" Kiba wrapped his hormone wracked body in the cloth of the comforter, trying his best to hide what his friend's little story had erupted in him.

"You know, it would probably be easier if you just told him how you felt."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Kiba turned again.

"Don't play stupid. You know exactly what I'm talking about." Akamaru huffed proudly.

"I don't feel anything. Naruto is a friend. Nothing more. The fact that you even think that he and I…that is, me and him…could possibly be anything more is just…"

"Stupid?" the dog barked in retort.

"Yes!" the brunette swiveled under the covers.

"I don't think you believe that." The dog prodded even more.

"What is this, the third degree? Can't you go somewhere else? You're smelling up my room." Kiba dismissed the quadruped, trying his best to hide his face.

"Okay, fine. I'll go, but remember…" Akamaru left his master bundled up in his comforter sheets. He reached the threshold of the door before turning his head to his life-friend.

'Oh here we go. He's gonna say something really corny.' The brunette half expected his friend to tell him to tell Naruto how he felt or he would lose him some day or something similar that was supposed to spur him to spill his guts.

Akamaru smiled an evil sort of smirk.

"…I'm gonna be riding _HIM _ tomorrow." The dog spat in wicked whisper.

Kiba's eyes shot open and he instantly threw his closest pillow at the dog in the doorway, nailing him in the butt as he marched out triumphantly.

Assured that he had made his point, Kiba turned away from where the dog had been seconds before, the still almost nauseating stench of his dirtied coat making the teen huff in anxiety.

He pulled his sheets closer, lifted the other pillow he had been sleeping on and reached underneath to grab something he knew was there.

His fingers felt their way around, searching for the item in question, but for some reason couldn't find it. Panicked, Kiba threw the pillow off the bed.

"Where is it?" he asked the accusingly empty mattress.

The brunette desperately dug through his room, through the layers of clothing, weapons and shinobi gear to look for it. But to no avail. Whatever had happened to it, it was gone.

"Looking for something?" a smug little whelp came from the base of the door.

That small, innocent, deceptively cute Akamaru came back, smiling at his master through the partially lit room.

"Akamaru?" Kiba barked.

The small wad of tan fur started to wag his tail, holding at his side the item that Kiba had been looking for.

"I found this under your pillow yesterday." The dog put matter-of-factly. He studied the cover quickly and darted his gaze back to his master. He knew he was treading on some sensitive ground. Some snarling, dangerous, sensitive ground.

"You really do think of some sappy stuff." The dog commented. Kiba started to lean on his knees, ready to pounce, the blood boiling in his ears.

"Give it to me Akamaru. Now!" the teen demanded.

"No way! Maybe I'll mail it to him." The dog suggested.

"Akamaru, I swear, if you do anything with that…" Kiba didn't bother to finish. He jumped from his perch on his bed at the smaller dog.

Akamaru quickly clasped his jaws over one of the edges of the picture and ran with it. He ran as fast as his little paws could carry him, the photo slipping every so often from his grip.

"Akamaru, give it back !"

"So what you're saying is that I have no choice?" Naruto asked the much older and experienced shinobi.

"Naruto, you always have a choice. I'm just offering you another option. Think about it. If Akatsuki wanted to, they could march into this village, kill whoever they wanted, and take you away."

Naruto sat on his heels and listened to what the experienced hermit had to offer him.

"I know you don't want to leave this place. But think about what's best for the village. If you're not here, then Akatsuki would have no reason to invade."

"I don't know. Maybe you're right. But…will I ever be able to come back?"

"Of course! All you would need to do is to become stronger." Jiraiya said nonchalantly.

"Okay. I think I'll do it." Naruto resolved.

The orange clad shinobi lifted himself off of the dirt, the older ninja pleased with his response.

"We should leave as soon as possible." Jiraiya stated.

"Really? Um, can we leave tomorrow some time? I have this thing I have to take care of."

"What?! What could be so important that you have to do it right now?"

Kiba returned to the safety of his room, the secret diary he finally managed to grab away from his smaller friend was slathered in his spit.

"Akamaru, why do you have to be such a jerk?" Kiba wiped the item off as best as he could, trying to preserve its original luster.

Finally, after all the frustration he had endured up until now, the invasion of his privacy, not to mention the blood loss, he gathered himself and his possession and sat on the welcoming downy mattress.

He stared at the soft bound journal, trying to smooth out the weathered abrasions left by the smaller dog. He took one long inhale and started to write again, right next to the last entry that he had made no more than two days ago.

He tapped the pencil on his chin incessantly, shifting his weight from one side of the bed to the other, wrestling with his words.

Truthfully he had never considered writing a diary about what he felt. But he couldn't tell anyone about it either. So the only logical answer seemed the corniest. He had to go out and buy a small, spiral bound notebook in which he allotted all of his thoughts, so at least they were written down. Otherwise he might have gone mad, like keeping a huge secret that guilt and the knowledge of knowing it would slowly eat away at better judgment.

It had wishes, it had dreams. More of specific daily events that the brunette saw as special, recorded with a pencil that he had been chewing on for the past week.

It wasn't anything really obscene or suggestive, but in the mind of the Inuzuka, it meant the world. For whatever reason, whenever he read it, he felt a surreal sense of place and an often foreboding sense of hope.

He never understood why, but that hope that he sometimes looked forward to was scary. What if he and Naruto could be more than just friends? It was something he thought about every time he saw what he wrote, knowing what it meant to him.

"It makes sense, right?" he asked in the darkness.

"I mean, he is who he is. I am who I am. We would be good together wouldn't we?"

'Oh my god, I can't believe I'm even thinking about this.' He turned his attention away from his savage thoughts and focused on the empty pages in front of him.

'We had another arm wrestling contest today.' He started.

'I think he let me win again. I hate it when he does that.' he took a moment to think.

'But I guess I can't complain. He has to give Akamaru a bath and…' he carefully thought of what to say. He remembered their wager. Naruto had to clean his room as well, as part of their arrangement.

'…at least I get him in my room.' Kiba wrote.

He heard a sudden rustle of the leaves outside his window and sharp snap of a twig, causing him to quickly stash the book back under his pillow.

"Psst. Kiba!" a whispered yell came floating through his window.

"Huh? Who's there?" the brunette quickly jumped to his feet and stalked over to the open window.

"Naruto?" the brunette asked, poking his head out the window. There, in front of his house, standing just under his nose was the hyperactive blonde.

"Hey Naruto. What's up?"

"Hey, nothin'. Uh, actually I was wondering if Akamaru was ready for his bath."

"Huh? Oh, you came to see _him_." Kiba sounded almost disappointed.

"Uh, yeah. I mean, didn't we agree that I would give him a bath?" the blonde juxtaposed.

"Well yeah, but it's eight o'clock, can't it wait until tomorrow? Why don't you and I do something?" Kiba tried to excuse.

"No, actually it can't wait." Naruto's eyes met his feet, his sudden lackluster attitude caught the Inuzuzka by surprise, and deep down, made him worry.

"Tomorrow? You have to leave tomorrow?" Kiba chanted again and again.

"Jiraya actually said tomorrow?" the brunette questioned again for the third time in as many minutes.

"Well, the sooner the better. Hold still Akamaru!" the small dog jumped through the foam of the bubbles, chasing his tail and tromping through more dirt.

"I hope you don't expect me to wash him again." Naruto tried to tease, any sort of positive reaction out of the Inuzuka was a very welcomed change. He hadn't said two words since the blonde told him he'd be leaving. Even now, Kiba hung his head low, hiding his real feelings.

"Heh…" Kiba perked his lips into a disingenuous smile.

"Come on Kiba, say something that isn't so depressing. I'm trying to make you laugh here."

"Why? Why do you have to go?" Kiba asked, sitting respectfully on a nearby tree stump.

"Well, it makes sense right? Akatsuki is after me. So if I leave, they would have no reason to invade the village."

"Akatsuki? Who cares? I mean you could stay at my house until this whole thing blows over. There's no need to leave the village altogether is there?"

"I don't know. Jiraiya thinks it's for the best."

"I don't care about what he thinks." Kiba jumped from the tree, scaring nearby forest dwellers into a frenzy and scampering away.

Akamaru had taken this time to saunter away from the two teens, hiding in the rich green shrubbery behind their house.

"What's with you all of a sudden?"

"What's with _you_? Why are you trying to leave the village? This place not good enough for you anymore?" Kiba pointed at the blonde, who in turn tried to capture him with his azure stare.

"Whoa! Where did that come from?"

"Well you must be leaving for a reason. Are you tired of all your friends? Not enough adventure for you?" Kiba snapped, crossing his arms.

"That's not it and you know it." Naruto barked back, lifting his fists in defense.

"Why would you leave the safety of the village. You'll be a much bigger target out there by yourself. If you stay here, you know the whole village will fight to protect you." Kiba argued.

"That's the point. I don't want the village to get involved. I'll let Akatsuki have the stupid nine-tails before I get you guys caught up in my mess."

"Oh you are just stupid." Kiba growled at him.

"What?" Naruto sat attentively on the wet grass, the bath water seeping under him.

"You didn't ask for this, this whole nine-tails thing. As far as I'm concerned, this isn't your mess." The brunette sat back down across from the blonde, joining him on the wet grass. He had to try anything to get Naruto to stay.

"It is. I have to go. I don't know why it's such a problem with you."

"Have you told anyone else?" Kiba asked.

"Well…no. But I'll say goodbye to everyone tomorrow."

The more Kiba heard, the more he wished he hadn't. Why did it hurt so much? Why did his gut feel like it was empty? Nothing but sour news seemed to come from the determined blonde. Maybe what hurt the most was that Kiba was losing him, possibly forever, and there was still so much he left unsaid.

"So, you're just gonna go?"

"Fine! Go ahead, go. Run away from your responsibilities like you always do."

"Hey! Now that's not fair! This is my responsibility. I owe it to the whole village. I can't just stay here knowing that these psychotic ninjas are waiting for the chance to grab me and probably hurt whoever they can."

"Naruto…what about everyone who cares about you? You're just going to leave them on a whim like this? I mean what about…me?"

Naruto looked confused. His utter lack of understanding innuendo was appalling.

"Kiba, we'll still be friends. It's not like I'm leaving for good." The brunette slumped near a tree and groaned out loud, grabbing his lush head of hair.

"You don't get it!"

Naruto watched his counterpart closely, trying to analyze his odd behavior. Kiba paced back and forth trying to calm his nerves when he suddenly and without warning snapped into attention.

"Hey, can I come with you?" Kiba asked immediately.

"What? Why would you want to come with me? We don't even know where we're going." The blonde made his way to his feet, and then to eye level with the Inuzuka cub who was a good arm's length away.

"It doesn't matter, at least this way I can protect you." The Inuzuka's blush started to erupt in the darkness of night.

"But I won't need protection. Jiraiya is there." The blonde retorted.

"The more protection you have, the better, right?" Kiba rationalized.

"Um, okay. Maybe you're right. But Jiraiya said that I shouldn't get any one else involved. In fact, I shouldn't have told you that I was leaving." Naruto rubbed his wet arm from the incessant scrubbing he had done on the little Inu-pup.

"Stop making excuses!!" The Inuzuka burst.

"W-What? I'm not…" Naruto took a few steps away from the brunette who had since his emotional explosion taken very large paces towards him.

Naruto held his hands in front of his body in defense, waiting for his friend to wail on him. He looked like he would resort to fisticuffs any time now. His eyes were glazed over with anger, his hands raised as if made to grab. And they did.

Kiba fisted the blonde's orange jumpsuit and forced his back against the closest tree. Naruto's mouth jutted open to release a silent grunt, his teeth clenched and his arms tried to push away his attacker.

"You are making excuses, Naruto. Why don't you want me to come with you? I thought we were friends. What, do you hate me or something?" Kiba demanded.

Naruto opened his surreal azure eyes and caught the Inuzuka in an empty stare. Behind the hurt expression in Kiba's eyes, past the veil of the night, he could see something else in his companion. He could see hurt, betrayal, longing. Something that Naruto never thought Kiba possessed when it came to other people.

"No, I don't hate you. I thought you would understand. I thought, if we are such good friends, you would be able to understand. But I guess I was wrong." Naruto spat.

"Don't you dare! Don't you dare say that I don't understand. You think I don't care?" Kiba challenged, his grip getting rougher the more the kyuubi struggled against the tree. He wondered when his full strength would explode outward and blow the Inuzuka away. But he didn't think much about it. He would face the nine-tails itself to keep Naruto here.

"You're a liar. You don't understand. You're willing to risk the village by keeping me here? You don't know what it feels like to have something like the nine-tails inside of you. You don't even ca-…"

"Say it! I dare you to say it! Say that I don't care!" the Inuzuka challenged again. His fists curled upward toward the blonde's collar.

Naruto stared at the brunette with stern eyes, trying to gain some ground against him to offer the opportunity to flee. But the brunette kept him securely fastened to the wooden post, forcing the blonde to look at him.

His eyes seemed softer for some reason, and something suspiciously akin to tears seemed to light them up. Naruto stared hard at the Inuzuka and said the words he was defied to say.

"Kiba… YOU DON'T CARE!"

He had no sooner finished his sentence when the back of Naruto's head collided with the trunk of the tree, his lips sealed shut.

Kiba pressed deeper, his mouth greedily trying to climb over the other. All his instincts, all his frustration channeled relentlessly to make the kyuubi his.

Naruto struggled, his feet desperately trying to kick the brunette away. He felt Kiba's fingers release his jump suit and opened into empty palms that pushed against his shoulders. He could faintly feel Kiba's fashioned fangs graze over his lips every time the brunette tried to push in for a new kiss.

Their lips separated several times, but never long enough for Naruto to voice a response.

Kiba could feel his cheeks begin to burn, his knees grow weak and his heart threatened to jump into his throat.

He started to get dizzy the more he forced himself onto Naruto. He continued to push against the blonde, forcing his hips to meld against him. Whatever it was he was feeling inside, he wanted more of it. That raw, aching heat he felt as soon as he and Naruto kissed.

Finally, Kiba released the kyuubi from his mouth, a small trail of spit was the only thing keeping them together. Naruto hurried his breathing to shake the light headedness that followed.

Kiba was no better. His breathing was much more labored from his combined efforts to keep Naruto detained and the bruising kiss he gave him.

"Don't…say that." The brunette warned again. The blonde looked on still in his daze.

"Don't say that I don't care." Kiba broke the small tie of saliva from his overly affectionate kiss. He finally softened the hold he had over Naruto's shoulders, letting his back slide down the tree trunk.

"I care about you." The brunette confessed. Both of them stifled their rampant breathing as the minutes wore on and not a word spoken between them. Naruto looked at his companion, trying to find an answer as to why he kissed him.

Of course being new to the whole thing, Naruto wasn't sure how to react. He hadn't been kissed in his whole life, either by a boy or by a girl. But something about how the Inuzuka did it, it almost seemed like he had been practicing.

He had heard about this thing called love, many times actually. More along the lines of simple every day occurrences like "Oh I love that new dress you're wearing" or "I love you Sasuke" and so on. When he had asked his sensei about it, Iruka simple smiled and laughed.

He told him that when you love someone, something special happens, and it only happens around them. It was something that could not be replaced by someone else or be copied. It was meant for one and only one person, which is why Iruka said that he loved Naruto. He was like a son to him.

Simple enough to understand, but yet so complex. The same resolve he found in his sensei's smile, he saw in Kiba's eyes. Which was confusing to say the least. He could not recall when, if ever, he had felt this strange sensation in his stomach.

But Kiba said he cared, and that was enough to keep him there. No one had ever said that to him, outside of Iruka-sensei.

Naruto was pulled out of his haze when the brunette in front of him started to barter the conditions of his release.

"I'll let you go if you promise not to run away." Kiba bargained. Naruto nodded.

The brunette slowly let the orange jumpsuit go completely, letting the smaller teen some room to breathe. He took a few steps away and watched carefully, expecting the kyuubi to run.

But he didn't. The blonde, whether for a complete lack of what to say or out of utter shock, stood complacent. Kiba watched, waiting for the sudden jump and the inevitable chase he would have to make.

The two didn't say a word to each other. The ambience of the night grew sullen. Even the crickets stopped chirping, surrounding the teens in perpetual silence.

Kiba looked at the ground, finding escape from the azure stare he knew Naruto was giving him. He didn't want, nor did he plan his first kiss with the blonde to be this way. Never under these circumstances. Out of desperation, and perhaps a bit of fear and loss, he pushed all common sense away for an instant, and took what he wanted.

It should've been special, just as he always envisioned it to be. Usually during the sunset hours or on his birthday, or even at night on top of his roof.

But instead it had to be like this. The kiss was more longing and desperate than passionate. He knew it hurt. How his teeth chafed Naruto's mouth. It was fast, it was rough, not like how he wanted it to be. As much as he wished he could try again, he couldn't.

Kiba hesitantly raised his head to meet Naruto's still discombobulated gaze. He trudged forward, taking smaller steps so as not to scare the other teen.

"Naruto…would you say something?" but the blonde didn't spare a word.

Taking his silence for consent, Kiba found himself closing in for his second try. He gently nudged the blonde's chin with his nose, the distraction allowed his fingers to lace around the other's hips. Kiba held his breath.

He felt his heaving chest press against the other, forcing him back against the tree trunk. The brunette slowly let his lips climb over Naruto's, cautiously bringing his parted lips closed in a rhythmic kiss. This time however, before their lips could make that crucial bond, Naruto disappeared in a cloud of smoke. In his place, he left a sizable log, giving him the opportunity to run without the Inuzuka able to give chase.

"A substitution?" Kiba yelped as the log hit the ground.

The confused brunette did not stay that way for very long. He looked around for the other teen, trying to track him by whatever scent he could get. But there was none. The wind, he thought would've helped carry any sort of smell for him to trace, but he was downwind. Any hope of finding the blonde was quickly dashed.

But the wind helped more than it seemed. Naruto's house was the opposite direction. If Kiba couldn't smell him, it was probably because the blonde was going with the wind, straight back home.

Kiba wasted no time. He gathered himself and quickly took to the treetops, following his instincts, all the while thinking about what he would say. The small reminder of what he did to the smaller teen started to dry on his lips, but he could still taste the subtle essence of ramen. But it was beginning to fade, causing the brunette to speed towards the Uzumaki residence.

'Naruto…please be there.' He silently prayed.

'You better not leave before I get the chance…' he paused. What exactly did he have in mind when he found Naruto again? In the privacy of his own home, so many things could happen.

'…to say I'm sorry.' He found his way to the house high in the treetops, an ever growing sinking feeling swelling in his chest when he saw the dark, empty house sitting in the glow of the moon.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

He thought about knocking again

**Whoa! That was long! But I'm back and this is the final chapter in the NaruKiba story I started God knows when. I do not own Naruto or any of its affiliates. This may be my last. ******** So enjoy!**

**Saying Farewell **

He thought about knocking again. He hadn't moved from his hiding place for a good ten minutes, debating whether or not Naruto was home.

Kiba wanted more than anything to go up to the door of the small, dark house, bust it down and make the kyuubi listen to him. What would he say? Now that may be the reason why he had been against going to the door in the first place.

He didn't trust the words that would come flying out of his mouth. He had tried to tell the blonde how he felt before, and that was the whole reason he was hiding now. What he did may very well have put his entire relationship with Naruto in jeopardy.

'Come on…you can do it. Just go up and knock.' He challenged himself. He had been apprehensive about the whole thing. Even if Naruto was home, why would he open the door anyway?

He didn't mean for it all to go so sour. He didn't want his relationship to end yet.

'If you only you knew how I felt.' Kiba whispered in the back of his mind.

The two had been through a lot together, most of the times they spent together were fun, relaxing, times that they could look back on and be enviable. Like wishing the fun could last forever.

The brunette waited, still debating whether he was wasting his time or not.

'He has to come back sooner or later. I'll wait.' Kiba thought realistically.

His fingers started to tap incessantly on the bark of the branch he sat on, keeping his eyes open for any sign of life in the dark house.

'Naruto, come on, I know you're there.' he smirked. He couldn't smell him. He couldn't hear him. He couldn't see him. But he knew the blonde was there. Kiba felt it. Just like the rest of his senses, it was a magnified sense of perception. He knew when his blonde was near, and he was actually quite grateful for that sixth sense, it saved him from many behind the back jokes his Naruto was planning to unleash on him.

Suddenly, the small door creaked open; he could hear the sudden strain on the hinges. Kiba's eyes snapped to attention at the sound, straining through the night. He could just faintly see the door ease itself open and a shock of yellow hair poke itself out.

He climbed to his feet and hid as best he could behind the thicket of leaves. His heart started to race at the sight of his kyuubi, slowly but surely leaving the safety of his house and out into the night.

'Naruto…I hope you can forgive me.' he thought, knowing what it would take to get the blonde's attention. he didn't want to do it, but force was the only way to get the idiot to listen.

He carefully timed his jump, his ankles started to rise off the tree branch. He gauged how far he would have to jump and how much energy it would take to get there.

Naruto silently moved outside, prodding his head left and then right, making sure he was alone. He took another step and then closed the door behind him, assured of his safety.

'Okay…now!' Kiba thrust himself forward and leapt from his hiding place in the treetops.

"Naruto!" he called just as he jumped.

The shocked blonde turned in surprise to see a huge blur charging at him.

"Naruto! Please! Listen to me." the brunette found it strange that the teen didn't respond at all.

Kiba was closing in fast, nothing but a few seconds between them.

His arms stretched out and almost had the blonde in their grip when Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke again.

'A CLONE?!" Kiba cursed mentally before he smashed into the closed door, falling so blindly into the blonde's trap.

'Damn…he's gotten smarter.' He mused before falling on his back. Defeated, the brunette lost the element of surprise and knew that he would not get another chance to catch the blonde. 'Either that, or I've gotten dumber.'

Rubbing his sore nose and his battered pride, Kiba sat outside the idiot's door, half wanting to knock it down and claim the prize inside, but he didn't need to hurt their relationship anymore than he had already.

Kiba rose from his fallen position, gathered himself and sauntered over to the edge of Naruto's porch and sat on the overhang, his legs dangling over the edge in mid-air. He sat, patiently waiting, knowing that he may have to wait until dawn before he would get the chance to see him again, and by then it would be too late.

The brunette stared out into the forest, then worked his stare up to the stars, and then back at his empty hands.

"Naruto?" the brunette asked. He turned his head over his shoulder. He thought he heard the door creak open, but it was just the wind.

"If you can hear me, I'm sorry."

No response from the door. Not even a nudge, but he knew Naruto could hear him.

"I'm sorry if I hurt you…" he smiled. "…but it is your fault you know. You shouldn't be so cute." The Inuzuka partially hoped that would stir some response from the blonde, but the door still remained shut.

"I guess…I felt…I don't know. Lost maybe." He kicked his legs out in the air. He started to twiddle his thumbs knowing he was going to say something really sappy.

"Desperate I guess. I mean, we finally start spending more time together, like we should be. And all of a sudden you want to go running off to somewhere I don't even know and you won't even tell me when you're coming back."

Unbeknownst to him, Naruto was listening intently against his broken door.

"I don't know what you want me to say, but I will say anything…just please come out and talk to me. Don't leave me like this before you go." it pained him to say it, he knew he was saying goodbye.

A sudden groan from the door. Kiba spun his upper body around, leaving his lower body still dangling from his perch.

Naruto eased one naked foot out the door, then the other and soon the blonde stood completely in front of the brunette, his usual orange jumpsuit discarded in favor of more casual gray pajama bottoms and black t-shirt, what he normally wore for bed.

"Hey…" the only intelligible thing Kiba could say.

"Hi." Naruto eased himself away from the safety of the door and came over to sit next to the brunette, a stern silence between them, broken intermittently by a passing gust.

Kiba stared up at the stars and then back down at his companion, who in turn faced the many candles in the sky. The brunette greedily moved closer, keeping his hands on the wooden banister that held him as he shimmied over to the blonde's side.

Another quick gust flew past the two boys, causing the blonde to visibly shudder. Kiba immediately unzipped his jacket, removed his arms from its warmth and offered it to his friend.

With no words expended, Naruto shook his head and put his hands in front of him, like he was fine being cold.

"Just take it." Kiba whispered to the teen.

Perhaps out of fear of what he might do otherwise, Naruto took the brunette's coat and draped it over his shoulders.

It felt weird.

'Smells like dog.' Naruto pondered. He smiled at the brunette and then turned again towards the sky. He would miss the smell of his friend, and he knew he would.

He didn't know what to say. Naruto wasn't as confused as someone in his position should have been, and that didn't bother him. He thought he knew Kiba well enough, but he was still full of surprises. And though he wouldn't tell his friend, when they kissed, he felt warm and secure and would maybe even want to try it again.

On the other side, Kiba watched his friend's face very carefully. He didn't show any signs of fear, or even anxiety. His diamond pure eyes still glowed even in the midst of the night. He often wondered what it would be like to stare into them directly. He also wondered if his friend would let him do it.

"Naruto…"

The blonde turned his attention to the brunette next to him. It was difficult to see the markings on his face in the middle of the night. But slowly, they came into view as Kiba moved closer.

"…look, I'm sorry. Really I am. I didn't mean to yell at you back there. And I didn't mean to…you know." the brunette started to blush and then panic fell over him. What would Naruto say? Would he ever forgive him?

"Hey, it's okay." Naruto perked. What else was he supposed to say in a situation like that? He knew that it was probably just out of instinctual reflex that his friend had kissed him, kind of like a good friend breaking down and crossing the intimacy boundary, even if it was for a second.

So maybe it was something that Kiba could've controlled, but chose not to for whatever reason. Rather than ask why he had done it, Naruto opted to say nothing at all. It was probably best to leave the brunette alone with his thoughts.

'I wonder what he's thinking.' Kiba stared out of the corner of his eye.

'Maybe I should say something. But what? I've already said I was sorry. I don't think he believes me though. I don't.' even he started to shiver now.

Naruto watched as his friend beside him started to grow goose bumps on his arms. The blonde slinked closer. Kiba watched carefully.

"Here, you can have it back if you're cold." Naruto started to unzip the jacket. Kiba held his hands up and rebutted.

"No, I'm fine. You can keep it." Another shiver ran across his body.

"No, you're cold. Here, just…" Naruto almost slapped himself. He thought of another idea, one where they could both be warm.

"…why don't we go inside?" the blonde invited as he stood.

Naruto walked the short distance to the broken door, the Inuzuka not too far behind.

The two entered the very humble but yet very modern house. It had been a gift that the village wanted to give to the blonde idiot for everything he had done for them and everyone he had helped.

The once antiquated walls with hair-line cracks and spider webs were repainted with a tan color that the brunette thought radiated in the house. The empty shelves had been turned into very festive tables with pictures of friends and "family".

Kiba couldn't help but notice that there were no pictures of him and Naruto together on the table. He didn't quite know what to think of that.

What he did see were pictures of Sasuke, almost every one of the photos had him in it. The brunette started to boil.

'What's so great about him anyway?' Kiba raged in his thoughts.

"Are you gonna sit down?" a deceptively innocent voice pulled the Inuzuka away from his mental ramblings and the photos. His eyes wandered over to the quaint little coffee table and the oddly white velvet couch the blonde sat on.

The Inuzuka's jacket was discarded and hung on a hook just near the table where the photos sat and Naruto sat complacent on his new couch waiting for Kiba to join him.

The brunette wasted no time in waltzing over to the edge of the cushion, far away from the other who watched him carefully.

It was very comfortable inside the house. Naruto's friends had been very meticulous in providing seasonal heat and air conditioning for their favorite knucklehead.

'He deserves it.' The brunette thought to himself.

It was never harder to speak to Naruto than it was right now. Kiba fidgeted and shifted uncomfortably on the couch, wishing that Akamaru had come to somehow break the silence with a woof or a yip.

The brunette found his stare on the floor, first at his feet, then slowly worked his way over to the other.

Naruto caught his friend's greedy stare and wondered personally what he was thinking.

All he could do was smile, pulling his whiskered cheeks back into a warm grin.

"Why?"

"Huh?" Naruto's smile quickly faded.

"Why are you going? I know I have asked this before, but you never gave me an answer." Kiba loosened, his wet palms starting to dry.

"Well, I'm going so I can become strong so I can protect you guys."

"I can't argue against that. But, did you ever think that maybe we don't want you to fight for us."

The blonde's stare got a little harsher.

"Don't give me that look! You know you…" Kiba started to argue again. But he quickly caught himself mid-sentence. Fighting with the blonde wouldn't solve anything, only make it worse, he realized.

"…I think you know what you're doing to everyone. But I have to ask, do you care?"

"What? What are you talking about? Of course I care."

"So then why won't you tell anyone where you're going? Why won't you let anyone go with you? Ya know, someone to protect you."

"I do have someone with me. I have Jiraiya to protect me."

"Besides him. there's strength in numbers Naruto. That's the first thing they taught us at the academy."

"So what? Jiraiya is real strong."

"Yeah, but what if Akatsuki comes after you? He can't fight them all."

Naruto was starting to get flustered, then he finally snapped.

"I don't understand why this is such a big deal for you."

"Are you serious?" the brunette looked a bit shaken.

"Of course this is a big deal for me. Naruto, I didn't…" his ears started to ring with blood.

"…I didn't k-…" he tried to look at Naruto but his friend's piercing blue eyes made him look away.

"…I didn't kiss you because I wanted you to go." He finally blurted out.

Naruto of course was as blank as a mad lib.

Kiba didn't bother to look at the other teen. His eyes were fixed on the ground. He knew he said something he shouldn't have, but it was all he could bother to say anymore. He was losing the blonde one way or another, it didn't make sense to hide his feelings anymore.

"W-well why did you…?"

He could almost feel Naruto holding his breath the moment those words came out of his mouth.

"I guess because I…want you to stay. I want you to stay here." He moved closer.

"I know I don't always say it…" he swallowed hard, feeling that slab of heartache sink to the bottom of his gut.

"…but I care about what happens to you. And, back there…when you said I didn't care, I knew that no matter what I said, you wouldn't believe me. So I had to show you."

"I know it sounds selfish, and I don't care. But I want you to stay here." Kiba was mere inches away from Naruto, his fingers dancing dangerously close to his friend's.

Naruto didn't know what to say, he had never been one to receive others affections, least of all from another guy.

"You don't have to say anything, just…" Kiba saw that Naruto was trying to speak in his defense but he couldn't run the risk of losing his momentum now. He spilled his guts for the blonde and he wasn't going to stop until he was sure Naruto knew everything.

His lower lip started to quiver when he felt his momentum slip. Kiba couldn't figure out what to say when he saw those eyes. So rather than waste what he was sure would be nothing short of love-sick drabble, he did what his instincts told him to do.

"…hold still."

"What?" the blonde backed away to the edge of the couch.

"I want to give you something before you go."

"You're…you're not going to kiss me again are you?" Naruto swallowed hard.

Kiba blushed.

"Well, yeah. At least I want to. Is that alright?"

"No…that hurt the last time. I don't see why people kiss all the time if it hurts like that." The blonde rubbed his sore lip.

"Well, it's not supposed to hurt. I just…got a little carried away that's all. I wanna try again. If it hurts this time, I'll never do it again." He bartered.

"I don't know." It was Naruto's turn to blush. He rubbed his sore bottom lip from the last time the brunette tried to kiss him.

"Do you know what you're doing?" the blonde asked as Kiba supported his upper body with his opened , beginning a slow crawl on the couch over to where Naruto sat.

"No…not really. But I won't hurt you."

"Um…?" Naruto paused and started to shake a little bit just as the brunette had crawled his way to the blonde's erect knees: the last boundary he would have to cross in order to get to Naruto.

"What's wrong?"

"How long does it last?"

"How long does what last?"

"A kiss."

"Um…I'm not sure. Sometimes it lasts for a few seconds, sometimes a couple minutes." Kiba almost smiled at the stupid expression Naruto had on his face after he had said the word "minutes".

"Oh, o-okay." Again the blonde started to fidget, his knees keeping the ever-shrinking distance between him and his friend.

"Open you legs." Kiba asked.

"What?"

"You have to open your legs." It was then that Naruto realized that his knees were still clenched shut, forbidding the Inuzuka to get any closer. Hesitantly, the blonde cracked his legs apart.

Kiba slipped his fingers into the small crevice and gently pried the blonde to open further. The brunette slinked up the blonde's torso and brought his arms to rest on each of Naruto's sides.

_I've imagined being here like this_

_So many times before_

_Reaching out to take your hand_

_As the butterflies in me soar_

Kiba's breath caught in his lungs, his uneven body pushing into the one under him. Naruto was laid spread out under the Inuzuka, keeping their bodies a very burdensome distance apart. The Inuzuka just wanted to collapse on top of the blonde, but he knew he couldn't risk the potential heartbreak he would suffer and the rejection he would get from Naruto.

Kiba moved closer, stopping ever once in awhile when he felt the urge rise up in him again. When he quelled it, he continued.

Soon the two were facing each other, not as friends anymore, but as the promise of something more. Naruto swallowed. Kiba was no better. His throat was threatening to constrict shut.

All at once, the brunette bent down and delivered a small peck over Naruto's closed lips. He closed his eyes and focused all on the contact he started, feeling his counterpart's quick bursts of breath glide over his cheeks.

The kiss itself lasted no more than a second. Kiba released his kyuubi from the delicate press.

"There, that wasn't so bad was it?" And it wasn't enough. Kiba's lips were still burning. He had tasted Naruto before and what took now wasn't enough. He smiled weakly at Naruto, seeing him finally relax.

Naruto began to uncurl his fingers from the couch cushion after the brunette delivered his kiss.

The small tap over the blonde's lips was enough to keep the brunette's heartbeat racing. But he knew that Naruto wouldn't allow him the same devastating kiss he took forcibly last time, so he opted to get off him.

Kiba sat back on his heels and gave the other enough room to pull himself up. Naruto sat with his legs folded in front of the Inuzuka.

"Hey, that wasn't so bad." Naruto smiled.

Kiba smiled back, faintly. He knew what he wanted to try was risky, but he figured all the damage had already been done. He leaned forward, crawling back on his open palms.

Kiba gently pressed his right hand over Naruto's leg and leaned in closer.

His nose was the first thing to touch Naruto's soft skin. Once he felt the warmth of his companion, Kiba let his tongue slip between his lips and press gently against Naruto's cheek.

He ran his tongue along Naruto's jaw line, up to just under his right eye. Naruto shuddered visibly at the contact.

"That's my promise to you." Kiba said as he sat back on his heels.

"I promise I'll be here waiting whenever you decide to come back."

That would've been enough for him, just to let his kyuubi know that he would be waiting for him.

Naruto rubbed his cheek when the Inuzuka backed away, the faintest smile on his lips.

The clock in Naruto's kitchen sounded, signaling the first hour of the new day.

"Well, it's getting late…" Kiba was the first to speak in the silence of the house. He started to get up off the couch, a tinge of pink dancing on his face.

The brunette walked over to the door, grabbing his coat and passing a final glance over his shoulder, seeing Naruto following him to the door.

Kiba saw the blonde in front of him visibly fidget with his thumbs.

"Will I see you tomorrow?" he almost painfully asked, his eyes never leaving the safety of the floor.

"I'll be waiting." Kiba said in retort. He stood in the doorway and stared at the blonde.

"Just promise that you'll show up." The brunette laughed. Naruto started to chuckle himself, distracting him from the shrinking distance between them.

'Just this once…just in case.' Kiba debated mentally what he should do next.

He ended Naruto's nervous chuckle with a quick kiss. He bent forward, keeping his hands at his sides, trying not to push too harshly.

His ears erupted, deafening him. His heart started to sing again, his blood rushing from one end of his body to the other and back again.

Kiba pushed slightly, waiting for his companion to respond. Much to his surprise, Naruto did.

The blonde pushed back, making the contact that much more passionate.

This time, the contact stayed with the two for a good ten seconds before Kiba released his favored blonde. Naruto chuckled nervously as the brunette cast one more glance over his shoulder as he walked over to the edge of the walkway.

"I'll see you tomorrow okay?" Like Kiba had been asking for permission.

Naruto nodded.

Kiba started to walk backwards, keeping his eyes set on the blonde in front of him, trying to remember him in his grey pajama bottoms and white t-shirt. He tried to memorize everything about Naruto that he felt he wouldn't see for a long time.

"Goodnight." Naruto said from the safety of his door.

"Goodnight Naruto, my adorable idio-t-t-t." Kiba's heel had caught on the edge of the walkway and before he could gather himself, he went tumbling backwards off the balcony and into the foliage of the forest canopy.

Naruto smiled to himself as he heard one branch crack, the sudden utterance of "I'm okay" from just below his porch.

Now, more than ever, he had a reason to stay.

The Next Day

Naruto was walking alongside his teacher, Jiraiya. The sun had just barely peaked over the edge of the horizon. It was a brisk new day, the chill of the mountain tops swinging down from on high to hug the village in a cold gust.

Naruto had said goodbye to his sensei and had asked him specifically to watch over Sakura while he was away.

As for his everyone else, he asked each of the Jounin from the different squads to deliver his heartfelt goodbye to the members who had become his friends.

But there was one person he was still looking for, someone who had not been around, like he had promised.

Naruto looked over his shoulder again, expecting the friendly Inuzuka to come running over the hill to wave him down and maybe kiss him one more time.

"Are you expecting someone?" Jiraiya caught the blonde in one of his stares over his shoulder.

"No…I guess not." And Naruto walked closer to his teacher.

Maybe Kiba had forgotten. But if that was the case, then how could he trust the brunette to keep his promise?

It was a problem that Naruto faced until he heard the muffled laugh of the Sanin next to him.

"I think someone wants to see you." he pointed to the gates to the village, and there, standing just under the arch, was the brunette Inuzuka.

Naruto ran up to the then taller boy and smiled, a small tear tugging at his eye.

"So you actually showed up." He nudged.

"Yeah. Ya know, the ground is really cold at night."

"You waited out here all night?!"

Kiba smiled and nodded with a slight blush.

Naruto laughed at the brunette and his little pink cheeks.

"You are such a weirdo." Naruto pointed, his smile lighting up the features of the Inuzuka boy.

"Well, I didn't want to miss this."

And with that, another silence fell over the boys. Kiba was still staring at Naruto, his smile fading more and more, knowing that he was saying goodbye.

"So…this is it." Kiba pouted.

"Yeah…I guess it is…hey!" Naruto was interrupted when Kiba swept him in his arms, without warning bringing his cold lips against the blonde's shoulder.

Naruto gasped at the cold from his companion. He didn't speak. He was afraid that if he did, Kiba would hate him. In truth, he didn't want to talk either. What Kiba did for him last night said it all. The blonde had no choice but to return the other's embrace, bringing his face to rest comfortably in Kiba's lush head of hair.

Naruto jolted when he felt a sudden drop of water over his shoulder. He didn't ask what it was.

"Hey, Kiba?"

"Hm?"

"I wanna give you something."

Kiba let his kyuubi go for the briefest of moments, just long enough to see what he wanted him to have.

Naruto visibly twiddled his thumbs. He wasn't sure if what he was going to do was right. Who knows with these Inuzuka types?

Naruto clasped his hands around the collar of Kiba's jacket and pulled him down into a chaste kiss.

He had grown more comfortable with the brunette now, enough so Naruto could intimately show that he cared in return.

Kiba stood in the contact, a fair blush now spreading everywhere else. But he let Naruto do all the work this time. He didn't want to scare the boy off with another one of his "special" kisses.

It wasn't too hard, just as Kiba would expect of the blonde for his first kiss. Their lips were not forced together, that is until the brunette grew impatient.

Kiba slid his digits around Naruto's orange jumpsuit and pulled a little tighter.

His sepia eyes slowly came to a close, trying to remember everything about the kiss before it ended. He could feel Naruto's warm breath over his upper lip, his bare knuckles just skimming over Kiba's opened vest and against his chest.

To his great surprise, Kiba felt the blonde release his hold on his jacket and just as quickly brought his arms full circle around his neck.

Now he could feel Naruto's lower waist press up against his, exciting him.

The blond stood on his toes to deepen the kiss. Kiba could just barely feel Naruto slip his tongue out and slink over his lips, causing the brunette to pull a little tighter.

Before it all could be truly appreciated, Naruto pulled away.

"Sorry! I didn't do anything wrong did I?"

"No, not at all." Kiba looked over the blonde's shoulder to see an impatient Sanin standing at the gate.

He looked back at his companion and asked one last time, a final request.

"Just promise it won't be the last time." Kiba whispered.

Naruto walked the short distance between. He stood on his toes again and placed his hands on Kiba's shoulders for support and delivered his promise.

The blonde's tongue skimmed over Kiba's lower jaw then up to just under his right eye.

It felt like two wet fingers gliding from one end of his chin to his eye, almost tickling him into a smile.

"That's my promise to you." Naruto smiled, lifted his discarded backpack and walked over to the gate. He gave his sensei a very stern nod, signaling he was ready.

The two walked silently together, Jiraiya every so often looking down at his stupid apprentice and smiling.

The two of them could hear more footsteps behind them. They were being followed. However, the steps stopped after they had walked about half a mile out into the forest.

Naruto cast one more glance over his shoulder and saw his loyal companion standing at one of the posts and he stayed there until he could not be seen anymore.

Kiba stood at the arch, his eyes threatening to spill over. He watched his blonde leaving him until he could not see him anymore. When he was sure he could not see him anymore, he waited still.

When Kiba could no longer smell his hero, he knew that he was gone. He gathered what resolve was left and walked back to his house.

The village already seemed so dark without him. The shops were all empty, especially the ramen shop.

Kiba stopped by the Ichuraku stand and sat in his hero's favorite seat. He ordered a bowl of the ramen that Naruto had liked so much.

Much to his dismay, Kiba felt the hole in his heart start to grow, even when he tried to eat the confection in front of him. As if it wasn't odd enough to be eating ramen at all, since he never touched the stuff, he couldn't stop thinking that eating it would bring Naruto back.

Kiba thanked the chef and tried to walk the rest of the way to his house without saying good morning to anyone. He finally reached his door just before the sun did, and thankfully his parents were still asleep. So he easily slunk in without waking anyone up.

The brunette collapsed on his bed, reached under his pillow and pulled out the familiar notebook.

He tapped incessantly on the empty piece of paper that he had in front of him. He didn't feel much like writing right now.

'He's gone…" he thought as he stare out at the rising sun. He remembered how that always reminded him of the boy's hair, strange as it was.

'…I miss him already.'

Kiba returned his gaze to the paper and then wrote the only thing that he could think of at the time.

At the top of the page he stenciled in "Day One", counting the days silently, one page at a time, until his kyuubi came back to fulfill his promise.

And he knew he would. His Naruto never made a promise he couldn't keep. That's all he needed to know.

Kiba closed his notebook, and walked over to the window where the sun poured in.

He watched the birds fly by and wondered how many years it would take for the blonde to come back. And he favorably thought abut how his hero would look when he did come back. Maybe even cuter than before. His wild thoughts continued to dance around the thought until he snapped to attention.

"Hey! He didn't clean my room! Naruto, you sneak!" the brunette cursed at the sun, that familiar warmth coming back to his heart when he did.

And somewhere he knew his troublesome little blonde was smiling wickedly.

FIN


End file.
